A week after the Patriots were upset by the Jaguars, New England roared into Buffalo’s other stadium and handed the Bills their first loss there.
Appearing Tuesday on NBC Sports Boston, Patriots safety Kevin Byard explained coach Mike Vrabel’s strategy to spark the team.
“He showed a video of the famous Allen Iverson, NBA Finals, making the three-point shot, kicking Tyronn Lue” said Byard. “So at first, you don’t really know where you’re going with it. . . . I think the overall message was, ‘It’s time to start stepping on people.’ You know what I mean? It’s time to get back to where we’re going over people and make sure we’re not going to be the team that lets people bully them. . . .
“So yeah, I think that was kind of the overarching message of, hey, we’re physical. We’re a tough team. Let’s start getting people through kind of like the AI in that video.”
It worked. The Pats were much more physical than they had been in Jacksonville, and in turn much more effective. The Patriots avoided a 1-3 start and a three-game hole in the AFC East. Instead, they’re just one game behind Buffalo — and they’ll have a chance to complete the sweep when the two teams meet again in Week 13.
